Ghosts 'n Goblins
Commodore 64 Amiga, Atari ST |genre= Platform |modes= Single-player, multiplayer |platforms= Arcade (original) Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64 / 16, NES, Game Boy Color, IBM PC, MSX, ZX Spectrum |cabinet= Upright |display= Horizontal |cpu=Motorola 6809 |sound=2x Yamaha YM2203 }} is a side-scrolling platform game developed by Capcom and released in arcades in . It has since been ported to numerous home platforms. It is the first game in the ''Ghosts 'n Goblins franchise. It was directed by Tokuro Fujiwara. Gameplay Ghosts 'n Goblins is a platform game where the player controls a knight, named Sir Arthur, who must defeat zombies, ogres, demons, cyclops, dragons and other monsters in order to rescue Princess Prin Prin, who has been kidnapped by Satan, king of Demon World. Along the way the player can pick up new weapons, bonuses and extra suits of armor that can help in this task. The player can only be hit twice before losing a life. If the player loses a life, they are returned to the start of the level, or the halfway point if they have managed to get that far. Furthermore, each life can only last a certain length of time. After defeating the final boss, the player must then replay the entire game on a higher difficulty level to reach the genuine final battle. Ports Ghosts 'n Goblins was ported to Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Commodore 16, NES, Game Boy Color, IBM PC compatibles, MSX, and ZX Spectrum. Commodore The Commodore 64 version, released in 1986, contains music by Mark Cooksey, which borrows from Frédéric Chopin's Prelude No. 20. Due to the limited resources on the Commodore 64, it was somewhat different from the arcade version as it only features certain levels. The player also starts the game with fewer lives. The version for Commodore 16/116 and Commodore Plus/4, also released in 1986 by Elite Systems, was even more limited than the C64 version. It was written to work on a Commodore 16, which had only 16 KB of RAM. Therefore, this version features only two levels and no music. In addition, the remaining two levels and the gameplay are simplified. Amiga A version for the Amiga was released in 1990. While the hardware of the Amiga allowed an almost perfect conversion of the arcade game, it failed to emulate the success of the Commodore 64 version. The player starts the game with six lives, and no music plays unless the Amiga was equipped with at least 1 megabyte of RAM. The standard configuration of an Amiga 500 had 512 kilobytes. Famicom/NES The Famicom version was released on June 13, 1986, and was the first Famicom game to utilize a 128 KB cartridge. The North American NES version was released in November 1, 1986. The Famicom/NES version was programmed by Micronics and published by Capcom. Game Boy The Famicom / NES ports served as the basis for the Game Boy Color version, which utilized passwords to allow the player to access certain levels. Reception GBC: 76% | Allgame = Arcade: NES: | CRASH = 95% | CVG = 33/40 | SUser = | YSinclair = 9/10 | rev1 = ACE | rev1Score = | rev2 = The Games Machine | rev2Score = 95% | rev3 = Zzap!64 | rev3Score = 97% | rev4 = TouchArcade | rev4Score = iOS: | award1Pub = Crash | award1 = Crash Smash | award2Pub = Sinclair User | award2 = SU Classic | award3Pub = C+VG | award3 = C+VG Hit | award4Pub = Zzap!64 | award4 = Gold Medal }} Computer Gaming World called Ghosts 'n Goblins "an excellent example of what the NES can do ... while hardly groundbreaking, it represents the kind of game that made Nintendo famous". Ghosts 'n Goblins was runner-up in the category of Arcade-Style Game of the Year at the Golden Joystick Awards. The NES version of Ghosts 'n Goblins was rated the 129th best game made on a Nintendo system in Nintendo Power Top 200 Games list. It was also a best seller for the NES, selling 1.64 million units. Platinum Titles|website=CAPCOM IR|language=en|access-date=2017-07-13}} Ghosts 'n Goblins is often cited as an example of one of the most difficult games of all time to beat, due to its extreme level of difficulty and the fact the player must play through the game twice in order to beat the game, without any way to save progress. On October 23, 2012, James Rolfe, better known as his YouTube persona The Angry Video Game Nerd, reviewed the NES port of Ghosts 'n Goblins for his 108th episode. Legacy Sequels Ghosts 'n Goblins was followed by a series of sequels and spin-offs eventually becoming Capcom's 8th best-selling game franchise, selling over 4.4 million units. Its sequels include Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, and Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins in addition to producing the Gargoyle's Quest and Maximo spin-off series. Though originating as an arcade title, the franchise has been featured on a variety of PC and video game consoles with the latest entries in the series, Ghosts 'n Goblins: Gold Knights, released on the iOS. Additionally, the franchise frequently makes cameo appearances — the character of Arthur in particular — in other Capcom titles, the latest of which being Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite (in which Firebrand, the Red Arremer that protagonizes the Gargoyle's Quest spin-off, also appears). Re-releases The NES version was also re-released for download for Nintendo's Virtual Console in North America on December 10, 2007 (Wii) and October 25, 2012 (Nintendo 3DS) and in the PAL region on October 31, 2008 (Wii) and January 3, 2013 (Nintendo 3DS) while the Wii U version was released in both regions on May 30, 2013. The arcade version was released on the Wii's Virtual Console Arcade in Japan on November 16, 2010, the PAL region on January 7, 2011 and in North America on January 10, 2011. The original arcade version of the game was also included in the compilation Capcom Generations Vol.2: Chronicles of Arthur for the PlayStation (in Japan and Europe) and Sega Saturn (in Japan only), which also contained Ghouls 'n Ghosts and Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts. The three games (based on their Capcom Generation versions) were later collected as part of Capcom Classics Collection. The game was also featured in the compilation Capcom Arcade Cabinet for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The Game Boy version was included in the Classic NES series for the Game Boy Advance, but only in Japan. References External links * * [http://www.arcade-history.com/?n=ghosts'n-goblins&page=detail&id=950 Ghosts 'n Goblins] at Arcade History * * [http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-st-ghosts-n-goblins_s8271.html Ghosts 'n Goblins] at Atari Mania * [http://hol.abime.net/2723 Ghosts 'n Goblins] at the Amiga Hall of Light * Category:1985 video games Category:Amiga games Category:Arcade games Category:Atari ST games Category:Amstrad CPC games Category:Commodore 64 games Category:Commodore 16 and Plus/4 games Category:Dark fantasy video games Category:Game Boy Color games Category:Ghost video games Category:Ghosts'n Goblins Category:Mobile games Category:NEC PC-8801 games Category:Nintendo Entertainment System games Category:Nintendo hard games Category:Platform games Category:PlayStation Network games Category:Video games developed in Japan Category:Video games scored by Allister Brimble Category:Video games scored by David Whittaker Category:Video games scored by Mark Cooksey Category:Virtual Console games Category:Virtual Console games for Wii U Category:WonderSwan games Category:Zombie video games Category:ZX Spectrum games